University of North Florida
BELMONT
Belmont spoils season finale
2/24/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 24, 2007
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The University of North Florida men's basketball finished its 2006-07 season with a 74-54 loss to Belmont at UNF Arena on Saturday afternoon.
The Ospreys (3-26, 1-17 A-Sun) went ice cold shooting the ball in the first half and dug too deep a hole to recover from against one of the hottest teams in the conference. The Bruins (20-9, 14-4 A- Sun) shot 50 percent for the game and hit 12 3- pointers in winning their fourth straight and for the eighth time in 10 games.
James Grimball tallied his 10th double-double of the season for UNF with 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Chris Timberlake added nine of his 11 points in the second half for the Ospreys, who shot just 14 percent in the first half and only 28 percent for the game.
"Our first half was hard to overcome," UNF head coach Matt Kilcullen said. "We didn't shoot the ball well and got behind big. We played good defensively at times, but Belmont is a well-coached team that executes on both ends of the floor. There is a reason they are the No. 2 team in this conference."
Justin Hare scored 17 points to lead the Bruins, while Boomer Herndon added 10 points and an Atlantic Sun record-tying eight blocks in just 20 minutes of action.
"Those two seniors have created some long days for a lot of opponents," Kilcullen said. "They are a great inside-outside tandem, and they certainly made a big difference today."
UNF showed marked improvement against the Bruins on Saturday from the first meeting between the teams in November, when Belmont won 87-32 in Nashville. In that game, UNF hit just 11 field goals and was dominated on the glass. Saturday was a much different story - especially in the second half.
After the Ospreys hit just three of 22 shots and went more than eight minutes without scoring at one point in the first half, Belmont pulled away and led 35-15 at halftime. The Bruins stretched that advantage to 53-24 with 11:37 to play in the second half behind Herndon and Hare.
At that point UNF heated up and made a final charge, using an 8-0 run to draw closer and then a 9-0 run with two minutes left to claw within 68-54. Belmont scored the final six points from there and held the ball on its final two possessions to run out the clock.
Belmont - the defending A-Sun Tournament champion - will be the No. 2 seed in this year's tournament, which begins next Thursday in Johnson City, Tenn. UNF is not eligible for postseason play until 2009-10 under NCAA reclassification rules.
"It has been a difficult year," said Kilcullen, who finished his eighth season with the Ospreys on Saturday. "But I am really proud of our guys because they battled to the end, kept believing in what we were doing and kept playing hard. They were a lot of fun to coach, and they and I know that many better days are ahead. We'll get back to work soon and start preparing for next year."
UNF does not have a senior on this year's team but will add three transfers to the mix next year in Tom Hammonds (East Carolina), Stan Januska (Morehead State) and Derell Henderson (Pasco Hernando Community College). All three sat out this season.
The Ospreys will also welcome back junior forward Gallo Cham, who was lost to academic suspension after Christmas, and signed guard/forward Brent Wood of Fort Myers' Bishop Verot High School during the early signing period.
